T-Shirt Weather.

Hey Readers,

It was holiday-hot today. Amazing. Definite T-Shirt weather. In fact T-Shirts might’ve even been to warm today. The one I pulled out of the drawer definitely was.

Okay, let me just go on a little tangent very briefly for a sec…

Band T-Shirts right? The cool ones all used to be men’s sizes, usually black and used the kind of dodgy print technique that would fade after a couple of washes. (Which kinda gave them that – oh yeah, these dudes, “casual nod towards own  chest*, Oh I’ve been into them from the beginning – look about them).

Then, the T-Shirt people realised that some girls like cool bands too. So they decided to make smaller ones. Unfortunately, the next thing that happened was that the aforementioned T-Shirt people, decided that not only should they make smaller ones for “chicks” (that’s what I’m imagining they said, it was prob worse). But how about we make them pink… and I know, put little glittery diamantés all over them and make them really girly, cause that’s what all girls want…

You understand that pink and girly is something that I get; summer dresses and tea parties esp; will wear to an extent and would never ridicule in the most part. BUT if I choose to wear Jimi Hendrix, The Rolling Stones, The S€x Pistols, The Jam or some other band that I happen to be crushing on at the time, across my chest; I don’t want to do it in diamanté pink thanks.

So man tees it is. I’ll favour the faded print, faded black, too big to look cute type instead. Especially if I’m in close proximity to a pair of scissors…. Like I was today…

I cut the sleeves off, just past the seam and cut the neck wider; (leaving about 3.5 inches (9cm’s) on each shoulder).

It was still a bit roomy so I got some sleeve holders and clipped them to the back to pull in the sides, et voila. Bring on the cut-off denim shorts and more sunshine please.

Sleeve holders in more detail. I got them in Oxfam Vintage on Georges St for €1.

Customised Tee in action.

Xx

I came to get down, I came to get down…

OR… I’ll serve your A$$ like John McEnroe

OR… White girl can’t jump… Not in these heels anyway.

Sometimes I just can’t decide on a blog title.

Don’t you just love an impromptu party weekend? The girls arranged a bit of a do in town, involving one or two cocktails, I hasten to add. Anyway, I knew there’d be a bit of a boogie involved too and having just bought this skirt & blouse, I jumped (soz) at the chance to wear them.

Both are made of really light, sheer fabrics, (if you can imagine a kind of faux silk-chiffon) which it means that they move really well when they’re worn… like when I’m dancing.

The skirt was about 2/3 inches longer until I chopped off the hem and taking inspiration from Hermés SS10 pleated tennis skirts, I left it rough-cut so it would fray slightly.

The blouse is a few sizes too big which I think is a good thing when the fabric is this sheer, more fitted might be a little tacky? It also means that the sleeves stay up on my arms without rolling which gives a much nicer looking effect I think. I tried opaque tights first and the whole look was too dark and a bit witchy, I opted for fishnets  instead.

Seeing as it was all looking a bit ‘saucy-secretary’ (unintentionally), I added bright red lips, a thick slick of Kohl on my eyelids and, I think, the highest heels I have.

All outfit details at HerApparel.

October Round Up

This post is going to be a bit of a round up on all October goings-on that I have yet to blog about, my birthday is on Halloween so I have been a little busy over the last couple of days as you can imagine. A post to serve as a nod to all things missed.

Firstly, this time last week, I had just returned from celebrating the fact that a very good friend of mine had completed the Dublin marathon; his first ever. He completed it in 3hrs 50mins which I thought was amazing and he thought was a bit disappointing really. Anyway, the weather was just incredible on the day; before I left I pulled on my faux-fur gillet, a hoodie and some walking boots to walk up to the route. It was an absolute pleasure heading out at 10:45 to watch him going past and cheer him on. (More pics here)

I also wore a woolly hat that I bought when I was in Quicksilver the week before. I can’t actually remember the last time I wore a ‘bobble’ hat. I think I must have been about 6 and probably had mittens tied together with string through the arms of my coat as well. To tell you the truth I am in love with the hat, it is so comfy and warm, in the last 8 days I have worn nearly every day.

Secondly, I grabbed a bus into town after my friend had passed the 16 mile stage to catch him at the finish line. The city centre was alive with runners, supporters and people just passing by watching the marathon so the atmosphere was fantastic. There were not only supporters everywhere but also fallen leaves, I took a few snaps.

Lastly, the boots I bought from Schuh, that I have been wearing non-stop for the last two months very nearly broke my heart. They have two buckles on each foot that fasten two leather straps around and over the laces. I was in a bit of a rush last Thursday and dashed out of the house without properly fastening the top straps. Needless to say, I lost one. I was pretty upset, as I said I wear them all the time, but I had a cunning plan which would serve to appease my upset. I took off the remaining strap from the other boot and replaced both straps with belts. I love them!

Swanky A. Rubanesque Move

Dublin’s best trimmings and ribbons shop, A. Rubanesque has moved to the ground floor of the Powerscourt Townhouse, D2 and they are showing off their gorgeous shop on their Facebook page. Here are the pics, they also have a window next to All Saints that look out onto Coppinger Row. I love this store and I’m delighted that they have expanded!More pics here…

Summer Straw Trilby

After blogging about summer hats last month i set my sights on making sure I found the perfect one for my summer in Dublin I found a super cheap one in Claire’s Accessories on Westmoreland Street that was in the sale for €7! I didn’t like the trim around it though but I came up with the perfect solution… I raided the tie rack at the Irish Cancer Society shop on Camden Street Lower and found a silk blue and beige stripey tie. Very boating chic. I removed the bland band from the Trilby, tied a bow in the tie, wrapped it around the hat and stitched it in place. Result; new chic summer headwear, perfect for festival or regatta alike!

Fashion Evolution Ethical Fashion Week

Dublin’s ethical fashion elite, re-dress et al. began a week of awareness generation and jolly good fun today with Ethical Fashion Week 2009. This event sees a really exciting schedule of events including fashion shows, a national swap party and ‘Vintage Vogue’  a discount scheme in conjunction with some of Dublin’s best boutiques. Print off a voucher here and see the list of exclsive boutiques that have joined forces to offer you 20% off from now until May 2nd.

I’m afraid I’m simply going to have to take part in Crafternoon Tea a series of workshops, designed to teach attendees design skills like embroidery, knitting and most importantly for me, basic alterations! For a full list of events or to find out more click www.fashionevolution.info

Catwalk Trend: Feather Trimmed Shoulders

This season shoulders are big news. From circles to huge pads to ruffle details to feathers, shoulders were barging their way up and down the catwalks in shows for both SS09 and Fall / AW09. From Italian designer Francesco Scognamiglio’s feather shoulder pads SS09:

To Givenchy’s Fall 09 amazing full feathered sleeve:

How to get from the catwalk to the sidewalk? I love this style and i just had to get me some of that trend… read on to see how I did

I Want Chanel…

As soon as the catwalk shots were out for the Chanel RTW Fall 09 collection, I had fallen in love with the gorgeous lace cuffs that were massive in the show. I know that Chanel had done similar cuffs before in 06 and these were fierce enough:

but the latest versions are even more fabulous darling!

I decided to make my own version…read on to see how

From Bland to Bling

Inspired by the Trapeze dresses all over the catwalks recently I decided being the frugal fashionista that I am, I should endeavour to put my own together.

When I found this heavy satin crepe skirt for €8 in a second hand shop I knew I’d found the perfect piece to create my own.

The skirt is about 3 sizes to big for me, so It will not fit around my waist but I made sure that I could zip it up across my chest, under my arms, and it was perfect. It comes just to my knees at the front and slightly lower at the back giving a gorgeous layering effect.

I then got some satin ribbon

…and these two €5 necklaces from Penney’s

and put it all together!

I folded a length of ribbon in half and sewed it to the top of the, now dress, to make straps that will tie behind my neck. I then unpicked all the diamante stones from the necklaces and restitched them to more ribbon in a pretty design.

Next, I sewed the diamante encrusted ribbon to the front of the dress and the rest of the diamante stones to the straps. I kept trying it on to make sure that it looked even and sat right as I went.

Et Voila! I have a brand new trapeze dress to wear. I think it would amazing with my short leather biker jacket and heels!

How to… DIY denim cut-off shorts

It’s definitely getting warmer so my thoughts have dared to travel to summery clothes and shorts. I Put these looks together to see the various ways that I could wear a cute pair of denim shorts for spring / summer season. I decided that as I wouldn’t be wearing the shorts that often (this is Ireland after all), the €179 that this gorgeous 7 For All Mankind pair cost could be better off being spent somewhere else.

So I decided to DIY a cheap pair to achieve the same look. This is how I did it…

1. Get an old pair of jeans or buy a super cheap pair from a supermarket / charity shop

2. Cut off both legs, about 10cm’s down from the centre seam (Step 1)

3. Put on shorts and turn up each leg twice to gauge the correct length

4. Mark the top of the turn-ups with pins so that you can see which areas to distress (Step 2)

5. Take disposable razor and rub across the areas that you want shorts to look distressed until they are worn through to the light threads that go from left to right. It might be an idea to put something tough underneath the cloth to protect the other side of the shorts.

6. Wear through all the areas you want and try to aim for the areas that would get natural wear like the waistband and the fly. If you aren’t totally sure how

7. Get some spray bleach or drip some normal bleach onto a sponge (wear your rubber gloves) and apply to the newly worn patches (Step 3)

8. Rinse and allow to dry

9. Put the shorts back on and pin the turn ups properly

10. Stitch the turn ups so they stay put. These jeans have elastane in them so I didn’t tack all the way ‘round as the thread would break. I just tacked various points on each leg (Step 4)

11. Press the turn ups and pull them on! Ta-Dah!

Now, the best part, deciding what to wear them with?

I really like the fact that they are all really different looks, with the same  little pair of DIY denim cut offs. The smarter look with the boyfriend jacket would work with opaque tights until the weather warms up, the preppy look with the navy-blue V-neck sweater would look really cute with knee high white tube socks to make it trans-seasonal but the casual look with the green parker and slouchy white vest defo needs sunshine and even festival wellies to rock it properly.